Should i get a headphone amplifier?

[mdubb86]

Hi,

Been using this forum for ages for buying advice but this is my first post. Recently purchased a pair of audio technica ath ad700 for use on my denon all in one system . However on use i do feel like there lacking something as my sennheiser px100 sound more punchy and full if you know what i mean. Is it becuase the sennheiser's are more easy to power then my audio technicas and would a headphone amp make all the difference?

Thanks in advance

[LFC_SL]

The PX100 are a great budget headphone and the one that through all this time I have kept as I have upgraded (for sentiment more than anything else)

You want to look at both the impedance and the sensitivity values. Home hi-fi headphones will typically require more juice to drive properly than a portable headphone like the PX100

Saying that a home system should not really be having trouble driving the AD700 and I suspect the Denon's built-in amplifier is leaving a little to be desired

If you are happy with your Denon, because a source makes more of a difference than a headphone amp which is really the penultimate upgrade before interconnects on the scale, then you need to work out a budget and what kind of sound synergy you are going for

Source/Headphones/Quality of recording > amp > interconnects

A cheap fiio amp will boost the volume but that is fruitless in the end because you should be going for quality. A nice headphone amp will not just provide the necessary power but also accentuate the good qualities of your headphones and source, as well as perhaps filling in small air bubble gaps

[mdubb86]

I was expecting these ath ad700's to blow away the sennheiser and they haven't , so i bought a b tech bt928 headphone amp for 19 quid to see if that makes a difference. Im using a denon dm37 all in one. Dont think its the best for these headphones.

[Drubbing]

Neither of your phones need an amp.

THe AD700 sound different and less punchy because technically they're a better phone, which doesn't always mean you'll prefer them. They are also well known as bass lean, which enables them to provide better overall sound quality than some others.

Amps don't add SQ; they get the best out of phones that need power to do so. But a good source is best if you're going to amp, and as yours don't need one, then improving the source would be a better option.

[mdubb86]

OK thanks for that but upgrading my denon dm37
is out of the question. I like it and its compact. The audio technicas are serving there purpose , more comfortable and longer lead . I was just expecting them to blow my head off with loads of soundstage, and on some albums and different types of music they do . Was just expecting them to be miles away from my sennheisers.

[r@mside]

Originally Posted by mdubb86

OK thanks for that but upgrading my denon dm37
is out of the question. I like it and its compact. The audio technicas are serving there purpose , more comfortable and longer lead . I was just expecting them to blow my head off with loads of soundstage, and on some albums and different types of music they do . Was just expecting them to be miles away from my sennheisers.

You might find that after listening to them for a while, you get to appreciate the differences between their respective sound signatures.

[Drubbing]

Originally Posted by mdubb86

OK thanks for that but upgrading my denon dm37 is out of the question. I like it and its compact. The audio technicas are serving there purpose , more comfortable and longer lead . I was just expecting them to blow my head off with loads of soundstage, and on some albums and different types of music they do . Was just expecting them to be miles away from my sennheisers.

While you may like the Denon, an all in one may not be the best source, and you may be expecting too much from it with headphones. Many people are tending to run phones off good aftermarkets cards on their PC, or a good standalone CDP with quality DAC inside.

Not only that, good phones don't make things terrific all by themselves, your SQ is only as good as your poorest component.

Lastly, I've heard quite a few high end phones on top quality sources, and none of them have blown me away. I find top quality audio just doesn't do that. It's subtle, depends on good recordings (another source) and time to appreciate what they are capable of.

Just trying to provide some perspective.